Any way the wind blows
by Prieda Solo
Summary: Because a box can be transfigured into a guitar, and everyone knows drums are easy to play. Because it doesn’t matter what the future holds, tonight there is just the music and the laughter. Marauders era fic.


Disclaimer: Characters belong to J.K. Rowling. Lyrics belong to Queen. I make no money from this work of fanfiction and no copyright infringement is intended.

Anyway the Wind Blows

"Remind me again." Remus said, turning over a page of his charms notebook, "Why it's necessary for you all to do this_ now_, when I'm trying to study."

"Because you work too much." Sirius grinned, and tried to flip the drumstick over his fingers, scowling when it hit the floor. "And this song is amazing. Andromeda's boyfriend leant me the record."

"Will it work on Evans's gramophone?" Peter stared worriedly at the vinyl record lying on the bed, "Maybe they won't fit together or something?"

"It'll be fine." James stared critically at the guitar that until recently had been a medium sized cardboard box, "I'm not sure how well these will play though."

"That doesn't matter." Sirius tried an experimental tap of the drum-set, "The music will be on loud, and you and Peter can't even play guitars anyway."

"Alright." James pulled the strap over his head and nodded at Remus, "Put the music on."

Sighing, Remus rolled off his bed and picked up the record. "Do any of you even know the words?"

"Course, we've spent ages practising without the gramophone, it'll be great." James struck a pose, and glared at Sirius when he sniggered, "This is how muggles stand when they play guitar."

"How do you know?" Sirius had a go with the drumstick again.

"There are posters all over Evans's room. They stand like this, and throw their heads back like _this_."

"Ready for the music?" Remus asked, trying not to giggle.

"You join in with the singing." James ordered. "The lyrics are in the dust jacket."

"They're a bit weird." Peter whispered, confidentially.

"OK. Sirius, ready on the drums? Ready Peter? Let's go!"

Remus put the music on, then sat back on the bed, trying hard not to laugh as James began, his hands strumming surprisingly accurately on the recently-formed guitar.

"_Is this the real life, Is this just fantasy? _Stop laughing Sirius. _Caught in a landslide, no escape from reality…"_

"_Open your eyes."_ Sirius warbled, _"Look up to the skies and seeeee!"_

Remus collapsed on the bed in a fit of giggles.

"_I'm just a poor boy."_ James continued, undaunted by Sirius's disbelieving snort._ "Don't need no sympathy._ Everyone sing this bit!"

"_Because I'm easy come, easy go, little high, little low."_

"That sounds awful." Remus laughed.

"_Anyway the wind blows." _Peter continued somewhat self-consciously as Sirius reached over and threw a pillow at Remus. "_Doesn't really matter."_

"_To meeeeee!"_

"Sirius!"

"_To meeeeee!"_

"Okay," James said quickly. "Peter, you take the next line, then Sirius, and I'll finish… go!"

"_Mama." _Peter began_, "Just killed a man. Put a gun against his head, pulled the trigger now he's dead."_

"_Mama."_ Sirius continued, singing seriously for the first time. _"Life had just begun. But now I've gone and thrown it all away…"_

Remus's breath caught in his throat as the music swelled.

"_Mama. Oo-oo."_ Peter gave a small giggle as Sirius's voice broke slightly, "_Didn't mean to make you cry."_ Sirius's voice trailed off as James glared at him. "Oh, sorry, is this your…"

"_If I'm not back again this time tomorrow."_

"Ooops." Sirius whispered, "Sorry mate."

"_Carry on. Carry on."_

"James sings really well." Peter hissed at Sirius, who nodded.

"_As if nothing really matters…_OK, Remus, you start this verse off, then Peter again, then Sirius.

"What! I don't know the…"

"Go! Sing!"

"Uh, _Too late. My time has come."_ Remus read off the dust jacket, slightly out of sync with the tune, "_Send shivers down my spine, body aching all the time."_

"_Goodbye everybody." _Peter took over seamlessly, his voice becoming more confident, "_I've got to go. Gotta leave you all behind and face the truth-"_

"_Mama_. _Oo-_piss off peter, this is my bit. _I don't want to die_. _Sometimes I wish I'd never been born at all-_ What happens now? James?"

Grinning, James raised the guitar, "Solo happens."

"Woah…"

The solo played, and to James Potter it was like living in heaven. The music, brash young and wild, filled the dormitory. Behind him, lost in a rebel's paradise, Sirius went mad on the drums. James felt as if he were the only person in the room, the only person in the world, a world where nothing mattered but the music.

Peter bit his lip and shot a worried glance at Remus, who shrugged, secretly enjoying the sound.

"It's a bit…loud." Peter ventured, looking nervously at the door.

"It's meant to be loud." Sirius shouted, his eyes shining.

Remus glanced critically over the lyrics, next to him, Peter nodded, "Yes, this is the bit where the lyrics go crazy."

"Not just the lyrics." Remus murmured, looking at his two friends lost in a world of their own.

"Okay, Okay, here it comes, Sirius, you ready? Peter?"

"_I see a little silhouetto of a man." _Remus started to laugh again, but feeling a slight thrill at the menacing undertones, "_Scaramouche, Scaramouche will you do the fandango."_

"_Thunder and lightning, very very frightening." _Peter managed, before collapsing with laughter as Sirius warbled, "_Galileo_."

"_Galileo_." James growled, as deeply as possible.

"_Galileo_."

"_Galileo_."

"_Galileo figaroooo!"_

"What?" Remus gasped, "Is this even in English anymore?"

"_I'm just a poor boy nobody loves me."_ Sirius continued.

"_He's just a poor boy…"_ Peter managed to splutter, gasping for breath.

"_Spare him his life from this monstrosity. _ Come on Peter, me and Sirius can't do it all on our own."

"_Easy come easy go, will you let me go." _Sirius continued, his voice breaking again.

"_Bismillah! No! We will not let you go."_ Peter broke down again, at James's grandeous hand-movements, half collapsing onto Remus's bed.

"What's a Bismillah?"

"_Let me go!"_

"_Bismillah, we will not let you go."_

"_Let me go!"_

"Wait a minute, it's let _him_ go…" Remus began.

"_Bismillah, we will not let you go."_

"_Let me go!"_

"_Will not let you go."_

"_Let me go!"_

"Ah, no, wait, it changed."

"They're not listening." Peter pointed out, recovering slightly. "Wow, that was so funny."

"_Will not let you go."_

"_Let me go!"_

"_No, no, no, no_. Stop laughing, both of you!"

"Sorry." Remus tried to look serious.

"_Mama mia mama mia mama mia let me go_!" Sirius's falsetto almost hit the roof, and all three of them burst out laughing, James hanging on to his guitar desperately for support.

"_Beelzebub has a devil set aside for me."_ Peter managed to choke out. "Who's Beelzebub?"

"_For meeee!"_ Sirius managed to warble again, as the strains of the second solo washed over them.

"Wow." Said Remus, once they'd stopped laughing, "This is really amazing music."

"Gaah! It's going to start again soon." James grabbed his guitar and leapt up, ready for action. "Okay, next verse, Sirius, then me, then Peter. And Remus, you finish it."

"What!"

"Go! Sirius!"

"_So you think you can stone me and spit in my eyes."_

"Okay, now me, _So you think you can love me and leave me to die? Oh, baby. Can't do this to me baby. _ Peter!"

"_Just gotta get out, just gotta get right out of here-"_

Nervously, Remus took a deep breath, waiting for the song to start again.

"_Nothing really matters, anyone can see."_

It was a disappointing ending, he thought. The song had started so brave, so free, so full of youth and fight and fire. So much potential, so much promise, and now it was just fading out, slowly, miserably.

"_Nothing really matters, to me."_

There was silence now. The guitar and drums lay still. Remus glanced at the dust jacket and took another breath.

"_Anyway the wind blows . . ."_

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Just a bit of fluffy light-hearted fun, with as much ironic foreshadowing as I could manage.

And I think I got the second solo in the wrong place…

Reviews would be much appreciated :)


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